Cardiology
by Molahsurey
Summary: House/Chase The first chapter is just a short little thing for fun to get it started.
1. Chapter 1

"You minx."

He had actually called him that, in his playfully mocking, yet horribly sultry, tone, and it made Chase smile. How could someone as awful as House make him smile like that? The Australian was practically beaming. He mulled it over as he shook his head, a wide grin on his face; the older doctor's back to him. Just like everyone else he had started out hating House, but eventually, and slowly at that, he began to grow, in a way, fond of him. He had often wondered how Cameron could fall for a man like Gregory House, and now he was asking himself the same thing. How could he possibly be feeling attracted to the man? The simple answer was that there was just something about him.

...

"Why me?"

"Because you have a pretty mouth." He could have said something along the lines of, 'quit your whining', but this response seemed more fun, plus it made a nice rosy blush appear on his Aussie's cheeks. That's right, his. They were all his, especially that one. He was the prettiest after all, and he oh so enjoyed teasing him.

Chase did go, that comment on his mind the whole time. He snorted and shook his head as he searched through the holding cell. He had a pretty mouth? Since when? And since when did House think so? Sure he had been messing around with him, but it still popped into his head, obviously, or else he wouldn't have said it. You couldn't say someone had a pretty mouth, joking or not, without really thinking it was pretty, not when you say it like that.

The sound of his cell phone going off took him from that thought not a second later and he almost fell off the step stool he was standing on in order to answer it, seeing, before he brought it to his ear, that it was House, "Hey." He held the phone between his ear and his shoulder as he continued to rummage through boxes.

"Oh good, your mouth isn't full."

Chase sighed, "That's really inappropriate."

"When am I ever appropriate?"

"Never," he replied instantly.

"Then you should be used to it."

The Australian rolled his eyes, almost losing his balance, "Did you actually call for a reason, or did you just call to tease me?"

"Ooh, teasing's such a strong word. Of course I called for a reason. I wanted to hear your voice."

Now he really was teasing and Chase felt a blush creep up to his cheeks, he could hardly stand it when House toyed with him like this, not only did it fluster him but it turned him on, oddly enough. He snorted, trying to cover his uneasiness with a bold response, maybe he could surprise House for a change, "Are you sure you weren't just curious to see if I had a big, fat cock in my mouth?" He smirked to himself; it was a lot easier to tease back when the others weren't around. There was a pause on the other end and he knew he had stumped the older man, which made him giddy.

"If you had I would have been shocked to say the least, considering how prude you are."

Chase huffed, "Who ever said I was prude?"

"Oh, come on, a fresh faced baby like you? It's obvious."

Chase grunted as he got down from the stool, deciding he didn't want to play along anymore, "Diverting away from that subject... I'm not finding anything here."

"See? You're a big baby. Fine, I don't think the problem is there anyway. Come back and we'll try out a new theory of mine."

Before Chase could say anything back House had disconnected, "Right..."


	2. Chapter 2

"You did it, didn't you? You kissed her."

Teasing, always with the teasing, only this time House was right, he did kiss the nine year old girl. Chase looked away, feeling embarrassed beyond belief, especially since House was the one who was asking; he'd be giving him shit about this for months. "Yeah, so what? It was innocent," he assured defensively, "She's dying; I couldn't deny her a simple kiss." Now he was flustered, he didn't want everyone knowing this. He just couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"Too bad it wasn't Cameron she asked for a kiss," House mentioned, looking at the female doctor, "Now that would've been hot."

Chase gave House a disgusted look, "Now you're just being perverted."

"You know what? I don't think you should be hanging with the big kids," he retorted with a smirk, "Go run along and play on your own for a while."

The younger doctor scoffed, shaking his head, "Unbelievable." He then swiftly turned and walked from the room. He wouldn't have admitted it, but House sending him away really hurt, as if the situation weren't humiliating enough he had to go and exile him. And the fact that made it even worse was that he actually enjoyed being in the older man's presence, he loved House's thought process and liked watching him think, he felt like he was missing out.

He walked hurriedly through the halls until he got to the lab, not wanting anyone else to see him, even though no one else knew what he did, he still felt awkward. As soon as he entered the lab he let his body crash down into a chair and sighed, bringing a hand to his mouth and swiveling in the seat. He doubted he'd be able to do any work, he was too caught up in his thoughts about House. Did he like him or not? It was bugging the hell out of him. His uncertainty quickly turned into frustration the longer he thought about it, and he was becoming restless.

But not even five minutes passed before he heard someone walk through the door, causing him to jump and spin around in his seat. When he saw it was none other than House he huffed, hoping he seemed upset as opposed to hurt, and spun right back around, pretending that he had been working, his face instantly flushing from being caught doing nothing. He expected House to say something right off the bat but instead there was only a pause. A long, uncomfortable pause. Chase could feel the other man's eyes on him and he tried his best not to squirm uneasily.

House chewed on his lip nervously, glad Chase's back was to him as he attempted to come up with the right words to say, "I came here to apologize... For giving you a hard time."

Chase certainly wasn't expecting that, and his expression showed it, but he didn't want the man standing behind him to see his surprise. Quickly changing his expression to a sterner one he glanced over his shoulder, "I find that hard to believe. You want something, don't you? Just say it and spare me the false empathy."

There was another pause.

"I understand why you did it..." He could have said more, but then he would've been saying too much; there was only so much opening up he could do. After another short pause he turned and left, leaving the younger man to ponder.

Chase wanted to accept his apology, he wanted to believe it, but House never felt sorry for anything he did, at least he never expressed it if he did. It was all so confusing. Why was House suddenly becoming all soft with him? Could he somehow tell that he was infatuated with him? For all he knew House thought he was completely straight, there was no way he was that obvious with his feelings. And he was fairly certain House was completely straight himself. It didn't make sense.

...

_"She stole a kiss from Chase, what have you done lately?"_

That comment repeated itself within the diagnostician's head. He'd done nothing lately, and he certainly hadn't been brave enough to try and steal a kiss from his Australian colleague. He felt completely and utterly pathetic. He'd been pining over the younger man for a while now, trying to come up with subtle ways to come onto him, but he just couldn't come right out and say that he had feelings for him. That would be very unlike him.

He reclined in his chair, reaching for his bottle of Vicodin, and snatched it up. Usually he could open it with ease but for some reason he was having trouble with it. He tried to ignore it but he had been feeling a lot weaker lately, and this proved it wasn't in his head. It began to hurt his wrist, which really annoyed him because his leg was supposed to be the only thing in pain. His frustration was evident on his face as he struggled, and finally, after what felt like minutes, he got it open. He immediately took out a pill and tossed it into his mouth but, again, he couldn't do what he normally could, which was swallow it without water. He stood and, in his aggravated state, began to limp off toward the water cooler without his cane. He was half way there when he clutched at his leg and winced, it hurt like hell. He tried to push on but, after taking one more step, he collapsed.

As soon as he hit the floor he heard the door to his office being swung open and suddenly felt the person kneeling beside him and grabbing onto his arms to help him up. And then he heard the voice, "Whoa... You ok? Can you stand? Take it easy." He weakly helped the man help him up, his hands reaching for any part of the Australian that would help him keep his balance. He was humiliated, but at the same time he was glad he was there.

He looked up at Chase, speaking meekly, "The chair, please..."

Chase nodded and led him to the chair, setting him down gently before crouching in front of him. At first he looked the older man over, wanting to make sure he was alright, and then he looked him in the eye, concern on his features, "You wanted water, right?" Housed nodded. "Let me get it for you," he said quickly. Without a response he pushed himself up and walked briskly to the water cooler.

He had seen the whole thing. He'd been standing outside House's office, ready to go in and give him test results, when he noticed the older man was have some trouble. He knew better than to bother House when he was in a testy mood, so he waited outside. He watched the whole scenario, and when the older doctor fell he rushed in right away to help him. He was worried, he'd never seen House fall, or seen him so vulnerable, it reminded him that he really didn't know House, he didn't know the real him. And it made him want to even more, it even made him want to care for him.

Filling a paper cup of water for him Chase brought it back over to the diagnostician and handed it to him, "If you need to go home I'm sure everyone would understand..."

"I'm fine!" House snapped defensively as he took the cup, quickly drinking the pill down. He didn't want anyone seeing him like this, not even Chase, not even when he was being so understanding. He felt bad for snapping at him but it was what he did, and it was a hard thing to break.

Chase drew back from him, shocked slightly by the harsh tone, but he really shouldn't have been. He nodded solemnly, swallowing nervously, "Alright, just... don't be too hard on yourself."

House pursed his lips, "I assume you have test results."

The blond looked at him from under his lashes, putting his hands in his coat pockets, "Um, yeah, we found a tumor in her heart, but it's benign."

House nodded absently, staring out into the distance, "That can't be the only thing... There has to be more." Without saying another word he stood and pushed past the Australian, heading purposefully for the door. It honestly hurt Chase's feelings that he didn't even want to acknowledge him anymore. But just before House opened the door he turned to look over his shoulder with a smirk, "Coming or not? I may need you to catch me if I fall again. I suppose I'd have Foreman, but it just wouldn't be the same without those strong arms of yours."

Chase couldn't help the bright grin that appeared on his face, letting out a small puff of laughter before moving to the door, a slight blush on his cheeks. It never failed, House could always make him smile.


	3. Chapter 3

"So, what made him have an orgasm out of the blue? What got him off?"

Chase's cheeks were red just from being in the same room with Gregory House, and it didn't help that the other man looked him right in the eye when he said that. Conversations about orgasms were always awkward, even if you were a doctor, and it was especially awkward since hearing House talk about the subject was starting to make Chase feel heated. His little crush was quickly becoming a big one; it was getting worse with each passing day. He stared, slightly open mouthed, at the older man as he spoke, his expression blank but with clear fascination showing in his eyes. Maybe it was because everything House did was so entertaining; the way he moved, the way he spoke, how incredibly dramatic and intense he could be...

A sudden smack to the table brought him back to the moment, "Hello, anybody there?"

Chase shook himself further out of it, House's tone making it clear to the blond that he was agitated, "I-I... I agree with Foreman," he spluttered, "something's attacking the pleasure center in his brain."

"Or triggering it," House interjected, making Chase feel dumb; he wasn't thinking straight after all. House walked back around the table, heading for the white board, when he suddenly crashed into the counter, grunting and doubling over, holding onto the edge to support himself. To anyone else it would have looked like he just tripped, but Chase knew it was related to him collapsing the week before; it made him want to jump from his seat and go to him, but he didn't dare, he knew House wouldn't want that kind of attention drawn to him. So he waited, feeling on edge, as the diagnostician calmly straightened himself out and pretended like nothing happened. If Chase couldn't keep his eyes off of the man before he definitely couldn't now, he waited restlessly for House to dismiss them so he could have the chance to check on him.

When that time came he stood with the others, moving to leave but moving slowly so he could discreetly stay behind. He stopped at the door and turned back around to face House, a hand to his mouth, his fingertips playing absently with his bottom lip, feeling timid. The older doctor's back was to him as he continued writing on the white board but Chase was having trouble finding his voice in order to call his attention. As if House could feel there was still someone in the room he slowly turned around, a confused look on his face as to why the blond was still there. Chase moved his hand slightly away from his mouth, his expression one that showed he felt he'd been caught.

House's eyes glanced around briefly before landing on him again, "Yes? What is it? I mean, I know my ass looks good in these pants, but not _that_ good."

Chase's eyes widened, just barely, and he flushed, once again caught off guard by how blatant the other man was. Taking a deep breath he moved forward towards the table, looking at it and tapping his fingers on it nervously. After a moment he looked up at House from under his bangs and spoke softly, "It's getting worse, isn't it? Your leg."

That wasn't a fun question; it was something he wanted to keep denying, even to himself. He stared at the younger man for a few seconds before turning around, returning to his problem, "Why do you ask? It couldn't be because of that little stumble back there, could it? I tripped, it happens."

Hearing House talk like nothing happened and that he was fine and dandy irritated Chase and he suddenly felt a bit bolder. Stepping around to look at the diagnostician from the side he moved closer and spoke with a more confident tone, "Look, you don't have to pretend with me, I know you're in pain, I understand. It doesn't make me think you're weak if that's what you're worried about." The more the Australian spoke the more it frustrated House. He began to write a bit more frantically, pressing the marker hard against the board, every muscle in his body tensing. Chase softened once again when he noticed how irate he had made him, feeling awful about it, and, without thinking, he reached out and grabbed hold of the older man's hand to stop him. They both froze, House taking in the fact that Chase was holding his hand in his, and Chase letting it sink in, in his mind, that he had actually taken hold of it. It was beyond awkward, it was painfully tense, but neither could move. Their eyes met, both hardly breathing, both riddled with shock. Neither knew what to do or say, they were silently expecting the other to lead, but Chase knew that this was his doing so he had to be the one to speak. He finally let his arm relax, his grip loosening, and, swallowing, he struggled to say what was on his mind, "Just... let me help you." He let his gaze wander down to the other man's leg before it flicked back up, "I can't imagine how hard it is to live in a house alone, dealing with that..."

House's brows were tightly knitted together, never had he been so confused, never had he been so shocked, and never had he been so unsure of how to handle a situation. Slowly pulling his hand from the grip, shaking slightly, he looked away and stumbled back a little, "I..." He quickly racked his brain, what was he trying to say? 'I could use some help'? Is that it? How pathetic. The pause went on for a while before he decided on saying, "Be at my place by seven."


	4. Chapter 4

It was around six thirty that House got home, and it took him a couple more minutes to realize that he only had about half an hour before Chase would arrive. He didn't even know why he told him to come over, the only person who had been to his apartment was Wilson, and even with him it was awkward and uncomfortable. He suddenly became self-conscious, worrying about his hygiene and his looks, and wondering if the living room was too messy. It was crazy; he never cared about what people thought. But this was Chase, the one person who actually made him feel something, whether he liked it or not. He began to pace around the room, glancing at the clock every few seconds, he hated waiting. Fifteen more minutes. He thought back to earlier, Chase said he wanted to help, he never figured anyone really cared about him before, but for some reason he felt like Chase was being sincere. Of course Wilson cared about him, but he was a friend, and just a friend. He couldn't help hoping that it could possibly be a bit more with Chase. He glanced at the clock again, five more minutes. It was getting close to the time so he decided to sit, staring at the clock and zoning out, trying to keep his anxiety at bay. Eventually his vision went blurry and it took him a while to realize he had zoned out completely. When he let his eyes refocus and he could read the clock again he was hit with a wave of disappointment, it was six past seven. So Chase was late, he probably wasn't even coming. Just from that notion alone House began to feel the pain in his leg worsen and he quickly clutched at it, massaging it. Groaning he stood and began walking to his bookshelf, why did he have such bad luck? Not only did Chase not show up, but now his leg was acting up. He refused to believe it had anything to do with him being upset; or feeling alone.

Once to the bookshelf he reached up to the highest shelf he could and pulled from it a box, he had purposely made it difficult to reach so that he wouldn't use this stuff often. Sitting back down in another seat he opened the box in his lap and promptly rolled up a sleeve and tied a band around his upper arm. Then he took from the box a syringe, holding it up to eye level. Morphine, oh lovely, pain numbing morphine. This was one of those times that he really needed it. He lined the tip of the needle up with his inner arm, ready to push it in, when he heard a knock at the door, causing him to glance up. There was only one person it could be, that person being Chase, which meant that he really did care about him. "Come in!" he called out to him, not letting another second go by. He quickly replaced the syringe within the box and pulled the band from his arm, but he wasn't able to close the box before Chase walked in and looked in his direction.

They stared at each other, frozen, for a couple seconds before Chase slowly shut the door behind him and set down some bags he had brought in, "Sorry I'm late... There were a few hold ups." He straightened up and nodded upward towards the box, "What's that?"

"Nothing," he answered quickly as he fumbled around with the contents.

Chase knew it wasn't 'nothing'. He went to stand in front of the older man, looking into the box and taking one of the syringes, his brow furrowed as he held it up to see what it was. "Morphine?" he asked softly before his eyes shifted to the other man, concern and worry on his features.

House kept looking downward, not wanting to look the younger doctor in the eye; he knew he had to explain, he just didn't know how to. He took a deep breath in and let it out before replying and acting like it was obvious and not a big deal, "Sometimes I need a little something more than just Vicodin." He snatched the syringe from Chase's hand, putting it back, and put the box back in its place, moving more calmly now.

All Chase did was nod, not sure if he really had anything to say about that, he didn't really want to have that kind of conversation right now anyway. As House put his box away he turned and went back to his bags, "Have you eaten? I got you Chinese."

House limped to his couch, sitting down, "What are you? My caretaker?"

Chase shrugged as he picked the bags up and pulled out the containers, "I just thought you might like something." He went to sit by House on the couch, handing the food to him along with a plastic fork. House took the small box without a word and quickly opened it before taking a bite, 'thank you's weren't really his thing. Chase watched him with a slightly amused smile before leaning forward and reaching for the remote, "You're welcome," he muttered under his breath. He turned on the television and leaned back, flipping through channels as his boss ate. He was about to ask House a question but when he turned his head to speak he was met with a fork being shoved in his face. He drew back a bit, his face scrunched up slightly in surprise; he figured he was offering him a bite but he wasn't entirely sure, "I.. had a burger on the way here."

House snorted, "Does that mean you can't have a bite? Come on," he urged, "it's yummy."

Chase shrugged, holding back a smile, "I suppose I could try it." He leaned in closer to the older man and opened his mouth, taking the forkful of food into it. Their eyes connected as he closed his lips around it and pulled back slowly, causing a weird butterfly feeling in the pit of the Australian's stomach. He closed his eyes briefly and hummed, "Mm… That _is_ good."

House couldn't take his eyes off the younger man, that look of contentment was so precious on his soft features, but he knew that if he stared any longer it would become awkward, so he looked away sharply and blurted out the first thing that came to mind, "Do you watch The L Word?"

Chase tilted his head and thought for a moment, "Hmm… no.. what is it?"

House plucked the remote from the blonde's hand with an amused grin, "Lesbians." The young doctor made a face at that but decided it would be useless to make any kind of comment, if House wanted to watch this show they were going to watch it. Chase would be lying if he said he wasn't at least somewhat excited about a show featuring lesbians, he had always thought girl on girl was pretty hot, so when House finally got the show going he sat back and actually enjoyed it. He was worried watching TV, especially this kind of show, with House would be awkward, but he soon found out it was kind of fun, relaxing even.

They ended up having a marathon, and after a few episodes Chase came to a conclusion, "That Shane girl is pretty cute. I think she's my favorite."

House looked over at him with a smirk, "Figures a pretty boy like you would go for the boyish type."

He blushed slightly, "Is there really anything wrong with that?"

The diagnostician shook his head, "Nope. In fact, she's _my_ favorite."

Chase barely held back a snicker, "Really? I figured it would be Helena," he said her name with playful femininity, then he finally snorted.

House tried to not let that annoy him too much, he did see the humor in it after all. His smirk grew, "Why? Does she remind you of Cuddy?" He rolled his eyes, "She really isn't my type."

Chase laughed, "What _is _your type?"

"Boyish," he admitted, though a bit mockingly, hoping it wasn't giving too much away.

All Chase did was shrug, "A bit surprising, but I can see it." He didn't think much of it.

House raised an eyebrow, feeling like this might be a good time to ask what's been on his mind, "If that nine year old girl had been a nine year old boy, would you have still agreed to the kiss?"

Chase frowned, allowing himself to ponder that question for a moment. Finally he nodded, "I think I would have, yes. It wasn't about the gender, or the age, it was about giving a dying person something that they may never get to have otherwise."

"So you _are_ gay, I was right," he said bluntly, his teasing turned up full force.

Chase spluttered, turning his body to him and replying defensively, "I am not gay!" His face was hot and he felt that nervousness in the pit of his stomach again, he wasn't lying, he wasn't gay, but he felt like he wasn't being very convincing nonetheless.

By now their show had been forgotten and House stared at his Australian 'pet', contemplating how he should go about asking his next question, "So.. if someone wanted to kiss you, but they weren't dying, but they might not get another chance to, would you let them kiss you?" Chase was taken aback by this question, giving House a dumbfounded look, not sure he wanted to answer. "Hey, it's a legitimate question," he pushed.

Chase rolled his eyes and sighed, his body stiff due to how uncomfortable this made him, "Uh, yeah, yes, I would let them kiss me."

"Even if it's a man?"

He looked at the older man with an are-you-serious expression, he was getting tired of this, "Yes. Now what's with the interrogation?"

House bit his lip as the blond stared at him with a slightly widened gaze, his heart beating just a bit faster at the thought of actually doing what he was thinking. He swallowed and barely choked out, "Would you kiss me?"


	5. Chapter 5

The atmosphere within the apartment up until now had been surprisingly warm and cozy, Chase really hadn't expected to feel so at home there, but as soon as those words left House's mouth the room had become unbearably heated to the point where the Australian felt like he couldn't breathe. At first he just gaped at the older man, not sure if he actually heard him right, and then, just from pure reaction, he began to laugh, not only because he was nervous but he figured House was just messing with him, "What? You're joking, right?"

House flushed but he tried to hide it, he was far from joking, even if it didn't seem like it, he still wasn't skilled at showing he was opening up. "Does it look like I'm joking?" he asked, looking sideways at him.

Chase was almost scared by the look in the older man's eyes, they were definitely serious, and so close to being completely sincere, he had no idea what he was supposed to do. He shifted slightly, his voice quiet but filled with interest, "Are… are you gay?"

If he were to be honest he didn't know the answer to that, he also couldn't answer just from sheer frustration, Chase wasn't getting it, he wasn't going along with it like he had envisioned. He sighed and looked away from Chase, staring ahead, before patting his legs and moving to get up, "Looks like it's bedtime." Just as he went to stand his leg acted up, causing him to groan and shake, but he continued to try and stand, not wanting to seem even more pathetic than he already did. Chase saw this and immediately felt awful for laughing in his face, he really didn't think he'd take offense to it, he also didn't like the pain he was obviously in.

He quickly reached out to House, scooting closer in the process, and grabbed his arm urgently but as gently as he could, pulling him back down, "Hey, hey... Don't run off on me. I'm sorry, ok? It just.. caught me off guard." House sat back down, almost reluctantly, with a sigh and ran his hand over his forehead, not saying anything; it was bad enough that he didn't feel comfortable, but he also didn't trust himself to speak. Chase let him have a second before he spoke again, "You asked me if I'd kiss you," he started softly, "If the question is legitimate..." he paused, gearing himself up, "then, yes, I would kiss you..." He stared at the other man, his insides quivering with uncertainty, but he felt like it was now or never, "I wouldn't kiss you just because you asked me to, but because I wanted to..." He took a shuddering breath in, "I want to..."

At Chase's last words House let his gaze drift over to the younger man, he had a hard time believing that, "You do?" He didn't give his hopes up, he didn't let himself believe that Chase actually wanted to kiss him.

Chase swallowed nervously, taking a moment before confirming, "I've been wanting to." House couldn't say anything, just stare at the blond with his lips parted, he wished he could trust those words, he still didn't believe them. Chase's heart began to pound and his breathing grew heavy, this would be the perfect time to do something, House was right there, not moving, just waiting. A couple seconds went by and he couldn't take it anymore, he reached out and grabbed hold of House's sleeve, yanking him closer until their mouths connected, bringing them into a breathtaking kiss. Even though their lips had crashed together and it had started out heated it soon became soft and cautious, the only sound Chase's harsh breathing, he seriously felt like he was going to faint. When he finally pulled away he couldn't believe he had actually done that.

"My lord, your lips really are as soft as they look," House breathed out, his eyes closed, trying to savor the now lost feeling. That simple statement made Chase's whole expression light up and he laughed, grinning and blushing. Was this real? He was almost expecting for House to smack him out of the day dream he had been caught up in. He couldn't help himself, he moved his hand to the back of House's neck and placed his other hand on the older man's chest, pulling him into another kiss, this one a bit more rough. House was pleasantly surprised by this second go and responded by lifting his hand up to run it through Chase's gorgeous hair, he couldn't believe this was happening just as much as his Intensivist. When they broke apart for the second time House's eyes were open and he looked right into Chase's, "Do you even know how pretty you are?"

Chase turned even redder, looking away bashfully, House's hand still in his hair, "Oh my god, stop it, you're making me blush."

"I like it," he said simply before smirking, "It makes you even prettier."

The Australian smiled wide, feeling horribly giddy, he didn't think someone could ever make him this happy. He shook his head in disbelief, "What is it that you're doing to me that makes me want you so fucking bad?" House didn't have an answer to that, he had no idea, it didn't make sense to him, but it did make him feel all warm inside. Before House even knew what was happening Chase was suddenly moving, holding onto him a bit tighter and swinging a leg over the older man so that he was straddling him, kissing him once again. The kiss was deeper, Chase taking it upon himself to start exploring further, and their abdomens brushed together every time the young man gyrated his hips downward, causing House to groan into Chase's mouth as his hands went up to hold onto his lower back. They were both getting increasingly harder and practically every time their erections touched House groaned, Chase, on the other hand, began to moan steadily as they let themselves get lost in the moment.

But soon the moment ended when House's leg gave off a sharp pain and he quickly broke the kiss, pushing Chase away slightly, and wincing. Chase was confused at first but then he saw the pained look on House's face and he took his weight off of the older man right away, looking down at him, concerned. House began to massage his leg, "I'm sorry, it just.. It hurts too much..."

Chase moved to sit beside him, "It's ok; we don't have to do anything you don't want to."

House chuckled, "You'll go without sex just so we can continue whatever this is between us?"

Chase shrugged, "Yeah, I mean, there are other ways to get off. And... I'll just have to be gentle with you," he said teasingly.

House's breath hitched at the many ideas that gave him, but he'd had enough for one night, he never liked things moving too fast. He lightly brushed Chase's cheek, a spark in his eye, before standing up and grabbing his cane, "Hope you don't mind having the couch tonight."

Chase was disappointed that House was done but he did understand, plus he didn't want to push. His brows furrowed, "I'm staying the night?"

House glanced over his shoulder at him just before he started down the short hallway to his room, "Well that was the whole point of you coming over, right? You didn't really think I'd kick you out at," he leaned back to look at the clock, "two in the morning, did you?"

Chase laughed, "I wouldn't have been surprised if you did, actually."

He rolled his eyes playfully, "Aw, come on, I'm not that mean." His expression became more sincere before he smirked softly, "Sleep well, my little wombat."


	6. Chapter 6

"Wakey, wakey."

Chase had just begun to barely wake up before House flicked him on the forehead, waking him up much more abruptly than he would have liked. He rolled onto his back, bringing a hand up to rub at his eyes, and groaned, "Mm... Why do you have to be so obnoxious?"

"Because I don't want you making me late, now get up," he replied, walking around the room almost too briskly for a crippled man.

Chase sat up groggily, rolling his eyes, "You're usually the last one to arrive, all on your own. This has something to do with me being in your apartment."

"Is that your final guess? Maybe I just don't want to get too cozy," he said sarcastically, grabbing his keys from a cabinet and heading for the door.

The Australian looked over his shoulder, seeing that House was about to leave, and suddenly he felt urgent in keeping him there, "You're not going to pretend we didn't kiss last night, are you?"

House sighed and was now the one to roll his eyes, "No, but I'm going to pretend that we weren't ten seconds away from fucking." He looked the young man over, "Brush your teeth and hair, you don't need to shower, and hurry. I'll be downstairs." He went to leave before turning back briefly, "And I'll know if you took anything." He then went out the door.

Chase wasn't sure if this was how House handled romantic relationships or if he was acting weird about it, there was really no way to tell, he was just being House. It was a bit confusing, but he didn't expect the man to change just because they had feelings for each other, he was still the same man Chase had fallen for, so he didn't exactly have any complaints about that. The fact of the matter was he wouldn't change House one bit.

...

They ended up arriving at the same time, Chase in his car and House on his motorcycle, so they had to walk into the building together. Chase felt like he should greet House, or at least say something, but he just couldn't come up with anything verbal, just a quick nod and a nervous smile as he fell into step with him. They walked in awkward silence through the lobby until they reached the elevator, which was thankfully empty. When the doors closed House smirked to himself and nudged Chase in the ankle with his cane, "I'd like it if the others didn't know about us." The blond had winced slightly at the cane hitting him, but then he raised his eyebrows at what he heard. So this was an 'us' situation. He quickly nodded, but he still wasn't able to find his voice. When the doors opened again they stepped out together, heading for the office. They reached the door at the same time causing them to both stop, not sure who should enter first, before House decided to barge his way in. "Chase and I arriving together? That's not suspicious!" House called out, looking for attention like he always did, which earned him confused looks from the two other people in the room. Chase hid his face in embarrassment, hoping that Foreman and Cameron wouldn't read too much into what their boss was saying. If House didn't want them knowing then why was he being so blunt? Supposedly if he joked about it no one would suspect it.

They all got situated so they could listen to House go on about yet another case which Cuddy had apparently informed him about that morning, which was probably why he was up so early. Chase watched him like he always did, looking like he was completely fascinated by every movement the older man made, which didn't go unnoticed by the diagnostician. They were about five minutes into the rant slash debate when House very clearly winked at the blond doctor. Chase sank down into his chair as a blush crept onto his cheeks and shrugged defensively when Cameron gave him a questioning look. Now it made sense, House just wanted to mess with him even more; well at least he was having fun with it. He actually kind of liked the teasing being paired with sneaking around; it was exciting, even if it was a bit perplexing.

Eventually he commanded them all to go to the lab, surprising everyone by following them. He didn't say anything, just followed them around the room as they worked, paying special attention to his new secret boy toy. It took a while but Foreman ended up finding something and called the others over. They gathered around him as he began to explain what he had found, and, of course, House made sure he was standing as close to Chase as possible. Upon feeling House standing so close Chase's body went stiff, he wasn't use to this kind of proximity between them. As Foreman raddled on Chase suddenly felt a light brushing along his lower back and it took him a second to realize it was House's fingers gliding across the area. A sort of adrenaline feeling rushed through him as the fingertips slowly went south and he glanced over at the older man with a quizzical look, House didn't even look back at him. Just as he was looking away House's hand moved further downward and cupped one of Chase's cheeks firmly. Chase jolted at the surprise grope, bumping into Foreman, thankfully only lightly, which caused the other two to look at him. This was the third time he got looks and he knew they'd soon be asking questions. House just stood there smirking to himself, this was fun, oh so very fun, and enticing, not to mention Chase had an extremely nice ass.

...

Now that House was back in his office Chase felt like he could finally have a private conversation with him, as long as no one else walked in of course. He walked through the office door in an almost irritated fashion, because, well, he was irritated. House looked up as the blond closed a few more feet of the distance, "Is this how it's going to be from now on? You're going to take every chance you can get to grab my ass and make people give me funny looks?"

House raised his brows at the intensity of his questioning before snickering, "They already give you funny looks, you just don't notice. The fact that you notice because of me is actually quite flattering."

Chase gave him a stern glare, "I'm not joking around, House."

"Neither am I," he shrugged, "I'm just having fun with a tedious situation."

The young man seemed offended, "Is that what I am? Tedious?"

"No..." the older man responded like he was dumb, "The situation is. It's delicate. Is that a better word?"

Chase sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "I just... I need to know if..." he couldn't find the words for what he was trying to say, this certainly was a delicate, and confusing, matter, "I need to know if you actually want to have a relationship with me." That was embarrassing, saying it felt odd, but that's what he wanted, he wanted a relationship. He didn't even know if he could handle rejection, but he braced himself for it.

That shut House up, even made him look stunned for once like he wasn't expecting that, even though he should have, he knew he was being elusive. He looked down at his hands, he suddenly felt so small and weak. He took a deep breath, "I don't even get why you'd want to be with me, I'm difficult, and I'll only end up pushing you away."

Chase stepped forward, feeling stern once again, "I know, don't you think I know that just from working with you? You're the most stubborn man I know. But somehow I got through to you, and I want to keep getting through to you." He was leaning over House's desk now, using his hands to hold him up, "I can't just push these feelings I have for you away; I'm embracing them. All I ask is that you embrace yours for me."

House's expression went from sullen to pleadingly sincere in a flash, something Chase had never witnessed, "I'm trying."

Chase's muscles relaxed and his features softened, the look alone had melted his insides, "I know, I can tell. Thank you..." His eyes drifted to where House's right hand was resting on the desk and he tentatively began to slide his over to it. House's eyes followed Chase's hand, every centimeter it crept caused more anticipation to well up inside of him; he wasn't used to this tingling sensation. Finally Chase's hand reached his and it felt so warm and gentle, the gesture was so emotional for House that his hand began to shake lightly; he was nervous, he was scared, he didn't know how to handle being in love. Chase squeezed his hand reassuringly to help with the shaking before running his thumb along it, "You make me happy... I don't know if it's noticeable, but I feel so good around you. You've always made me feel that way."

It was then that House finally cracked a smile again, a genuine one, "Believe me, I've noticed, you practically glow. There have been times when you'd beam so much I thought lights would shoot from your eyes," he chuckled lightly, causing Chase to chuckle as well.

He had no idea House could tell, either he is just really perceptive or Chase was really just that obvious, he hoped, and guessed, it was the first. He smiled brightly, a light blush on his cheeks, "So you were just going to let me keep having these feelings for you without telling me you had any in return?"

He looked up at him playfully, "Hey, I flirted, or did that go over your precious little head?"

Chase snickered, "I didn't know if you were just messing with me!"

House looked back down at their hands, shifting his so that he could brush his fingertips along the other man's hand as well, "No," he said quietly, "But I'll admit, I was in denial."

The blond chuckled lightly and walked around the desk, making sure their hands didn't break contact, "Well don't be!"

Because they were holding hands House had to spin in his chair slightly until he was facing the younger man, and because his legs were spread apart Chase instinctively stood between them, causing him to lean back in his chair just so he could see him. With a smirk he yanked Chase closer by the hand so that he was standing more snugly between his legs and quickly hooked the fingers of his other hand into the Australian's waistband, "I do like the secrecy though."

Chase wiggled his hips a bit, already aroused, speaking seductively with a flirtatious smile, "Mm... Me too, it's quite stimulating."

House practically purred at the sight of Chase all flushed and heated, that and the sound of his voice was quickly getting him hard. He yanked on the waistband a bit before sliding his hand around to grope at the young man's ass again, he kneaded at it as he pulled on Chase's hand so that he was leaning over him, "I'd fuck you right here on my desk if I thought we'd get away with it."

Chase's stomach coiled at those words and he almost lost his balance due to how weak in the knees he felt, "Fuck..." he breathed out and wiggled his hips again. He licked his lips as his breathing picked up and he brought his knee up to tease at House's erection, leaning in even closer, "You have no idea how badly I want that."

"I knew you were a bottom," he teased as he took his hand from the other man's and lifted it up to fist it into Chase's hair, pulling his face down so that their mouths were barely touching. Chase whimpered and ground his knee into the older man, causing House to groan as their lips gently caressed each other's. Chase continued to move against him, becoming unbearably aroused, he wanted so badly to get him off, to make House come for him right there in his office.

But as luck would have it Chase's pager went off, making them both pause what they were doing. Chase closed his eyes, whining in disappointment, before reluctantly pulling away to look at his pager, their current patient was having complications, "Looks like we'll have to continue this another time." Being left hanging was never fun but House understood, giving a slight nod but not saying anything, looking just as disappointed. Chase nodded back with an apologetic look before moving further away and going to leave.

"Chase," House stopped him just before he opened the door, the blond looking over his shoulder, "My house again, seven?"

Chase grinned, "Yeah, sure."

House smirked, "Good, let's make a habit of that." Chase bit his lip, still grinning, and nodded once more before leaving.


	7. Chapter 7

When House was shot it had felt like Chase's entire world had ended, in that one second life without House had flashed before his eyes and it was complete hell, complete fucking loneliness; he knew he couldn't bare life without the man. He had rushed to the almost lifeless body when the first shot went off but he was quickly driven away from the 'body' when the criminal waved him back warningly. He needed House to be ok; he desperately needed him to be alive. It felt like eternity before the police got there and House was rushed onto a gurney, it didn't happen soon enough for Chase's liking. He followed the gurney the whole way to the ER, demanding that he be part of the team that worked on keeping the older man alive; he had to be there to make sure people worked their hardest to save him. Unfortunately they denied him the opportunity; saying they already had everyone they needed, they didn't, however, word their concerns about the Australian being too emotionally compromised, which was really their main reason. All Chase could do was watch helplessly, running his hand anxiously through his hair, as they wheeled House into the emergency room.

He occupied himself for at least the first half hour by pacing back and forth, his mind recalling the image of House lying on the floor, blood pooling around him. It looked horrific, he could only imagine how much pain he was in, it made him feel nauseous just thinking about it. The man who had done this was despicable, House was a difficult man but he didn't deserve to be shot. Chase was outraged and brimming with worry, he hadn't been this scared and concerned in years. After that first half hour he was exhausted, physically and emotionally, and he finally decided to sit and try to calm down, which was extremely difficult, he was more than too restless. Now it was time to beat himself up, he should have seen right away that the man was unstable, he should have acted quickly and stepped between them, he should have paged security right away. He stared at the clock as he tapped his foot, his elbows on his knees with his hands to his mouth, it was taking so long, and he knew it could take much longer, he didn't know what to do with himself.

A few minutes later a female doctor came through the double doors, looking around for Chase, guessing he'd still be there. The Intensivist glanced over to see her before standing and going hurriedly to her. He didn't get the chance to say anything before she spoke, "He's stable, but there's still quite a bit of surgery left to go."

He heaved a sigh of relief, thanking god he was stable, and nodded, "I'll be here." There was no way he wasn't staying; he'd stay all night if he had to. He doctor nodded in return and quickly went back through the doors. The Australian looked around, watching as people rushed about in the ER just down the hall, he was used to this, but when it came to House he felt sick. He sat back down, hanging his head in his hands, waiting, just waiting.

...

Almost an hour and a half later House was brought to a room, the surgery being a success, and Chase immediately went to meet him there even though the female doctor from before told him he'd be knocked out for at least another forty five minutes. He entered the room and was met with the dim lights and quiet beeping of the machines, and the almost carefree vision of House sleeping in the bed. He'd never seen the man looking so calm, it was a gorgeous sight; he wished he could keep his features that soft when he was awake, but he supposed this was good enough. The blond walked slowly around the bed so that he was on the opposite side of the door and standing right beside House, then, a bit hesitantly, he reached out to lightly take the older man's hand in his, running his thumb along the back, causing House to shift slightly. He had the sudden urge to lean down and kiss him, but he figured that if House knew he would feel violated. Whether that was true or not, though, he couldn't resist, so he bent over and gently pressed his lips to his, holding it for a second. Straightening up he ran a hand through his hair and sighed before sitting down in the nearby chair. He was intent on sitting there patiently, just watching the other man as he slept, but he had already been waiting for so long, and he'd become so tired, that he nodded off within minutes.

He awoke to rustling, almost like he could tell in the back of his head that House was waking up. Drearily he blinked his eyes open and let them focus on the man in the bed, finding that he was already staring back at him. He smiled lightly as he sat up straighter, rubbing at his face to wake himself up more.

"You didn't wait around this whole time, did you?"

Chase's gaze shot up to the older man, his brows slightly furrowed, "Of course, why wouldn't I have?"

House shrugged and blew out some air, shaking his head, before replying slightly sarcastically, "Oh, I don't know, probably because you have better things to do, like your job."

Chase scoffed before giving him a soft look, "I was so worried..."

It was actually touching that he was worried, that he cared that about him, but he wasn't usually someone who showed gratitude, or believed someone could actually care that much about him, so he responded dismissively, "I survived one near death experience, why wouldn't I survive this one?" Even though he said it in a passive manner it was clear in his eyes that he had been longing for this kind of connection.

Chase felt that now familiar urgency to speak his mind again, something only House could make him feel; only he could get him so worked up. He scooted to the edge of his seat, reaching out to take House's hand again, his features tight with seriousness, "In these past few hours I had to think about what my life would be like without you. I can tell you right now that it would be empty. It would be boring, bland, and awful. Call it silly, or stupid, or whatever you like, but I honestly don't think I could live without you..."

House couldn't believe that, he didn't believe that, not one bit, "You'd manage," he said quietly. He refused to believe he was that important to Chase; that Chase's life wouldn't go on without him there.

In one swift movement Chase stood and bent down to give him as much of a hug as he could, "I mean it, Greg, I need you."

And that was the first time the Australian had called him by his first name.


End file.
